


Return of the White Dragon

by Leixas



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Auror Harry Potter, Auror Ron Weasley, Curse Breaker Draco Malfoy, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-16
Updated: 2020-09-29
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:42:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26496592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leixas/pseuds/Leixas
Summary: Draco Malfoy returns to Britain after almost half a decade as one of the new curse breakers employed the by Ministry of Magic. he's hoping it turns out to be the great idea it is supposed to be.
Kudos: 4





	1. Welcome Back Part 1

_Ministry Announces Creation of Office for Spell Deactivation_  
_By: Jason St. Louis_

_The Office of the Minister of Britain has announced the passing of the Ministerial Order # 2003-0017, or the Office for Spell Deactivation Law._  
_“Minister Shacklebolt has been aiming to create the aforementioned office for several months now,” MInsterial Spokesperson Anthony Guantamano claimed during a press conference in the Ministry headquarters. ”It has come to his attention that a lot of the magical spells and curses that are encountered by several departments weren’t dealt with in an as efficient manner as he would have liked.”_  
_This statement pertains to the report released by the Department of Audit last year revealing that 45% of the curses and spells that several departments encountered since Minister Shacklebolt assumed office five years ago are not terminated, but instead just under permanent containment measures. In a copy released into the public, Department Head and Primary Investigator of the case Anton Washington concluded that the involved departments are currently utilizing a total of 198 personnel and have spent and estimated almost 20 968 000 galleons in these containment measures._  
_“The Office for Spell Deactivation, OSD for short, will have three main responsibilities,” Guantamano explained when asked about would-be roles of the office. “First, they will be responsible for developing counter spells for spells and curses that are referred to them. Second, is the termination of the spells affecting all items currently under containment. And lastly, to catalogue every spell and curses that are encountered for recording purposes.”_  
_“We already have a Head and Assistant Head for the office, and we are currently under negotiations with the best Curse Breakers that our country has to offer. The goal is to have at least 30 working field personnel by the time the Office formally opens.” Guantamano said in closing._  
_The Office for Spell Deactivation is set to open on August 18._

* * *

Harry Potter slammed the newspaper into the table as he finished reading the article. He’s currently in Grimmauld’s Place along with his long time friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, and his girlfriend Ginny. All of them, except for Ginny, are to be affected by this new office. Hermione is currently working for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures and Ron and Harry are working in the Auror Office, both of which are among the number of departments expected to be working with the newly created office.

“I can’t believe this,” Ron exclaimed, scowling at the paper as if it personally offended him.

“Well, you should,” Ginny told his brother from her seat beside Harry. “Because you’ll be working with them in two weeks.”

“But it looks like Shacklebolt doubts us!” Ron protested.

“I don’t think he is,” Hermione said, though she’s been frowning ever since Harry had read the news article. “The Ministry had allocated millions of galleons into containment procedures in the past 5 years alone, not to mention over a hundred personnel. You really can’t blame him for what he did. That a lot of wasted resources.”

“You really can’t expect me to believe that the Ministry is being inconvenienced by that,” Ron scoffed in response.

“It’s not a matter of inconvenience,” Harry said for the first time ever since reading the article to his companions, “it’s not practical to continue using that much money and workers in containment procedures, and you have to admit Ron, the Auror Office has sent a lot of items and sites under containment procedures.” According to the report, the Auror Office has the largest number of items put under containment, followed by the Improper Use of Magic Office and Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.

“Don’t tell me you’re okay with this!” Ron said to his best friend. “I’m telling you, if we aren’t able to finish our stabbing case in two weeks, we will be the first ones to work with them. Imagine someone else taking the credit for all our hard work!”

“Of course not, Ron,” Harry tried to appease his friend. Like Ron, he doesn’t feel very welcoming to this new office, as it making him feel like the Minister is losing faith in the abilities of their office, and in extension, them “I don’t there will be credit grabbing, and Kingsley’s intentions are understandable. Aurors are trained to catch dark wizards and witches, not to break curses.”

“Then they should give us training in curse breaking!” Ron said loudly, “not shove these curse breakers down our throats!”

“Really, Ron?” Hermione asked sceptically. “You’re willing to undergo additional training in curse breaking? You can’t even be bothered to retake 7th year before going to Auror training.”

“Yeah, Ron,” Ginny said in agreement, looking at his brother with a little sneer. “You’re willing to have additional training? But you’re allergic to training.”

Ron spluttered at what Hermione and Ginny said. “It’s better than dealing with those arrogant tomb janitors every day for the rest of my career!”

“How can you be so sure that they will be arrogant?” Harry asked his friend. “Bill is a Curse Breaker, and he doesn’t strike me as arrogant.”

“Oh, Harry, dear,” Ginny tapped her boyfriend’s shoulder in mock sympathy. “Bill may be a good guy and my favourite brother, but he’s arrogant. He’s just really good in hiding it from other people.”

“Really?” Hermione said. She too, like Harry can’t imagine the out-going guy as arrogant.

“Yeah,” Ron agreed with her sister with fervour, “most of the time he’s great, but there are times when he’s this arrogant person who looks down on other jobs that he considers boring and too easy.”

“Then maybe it’s just him?” Harry said hopefully.

Ginny snorted.

“That would have been great,” Ron said, “But a few years ago he visited the Burrow with some of his friends, and I’m telling you, Bill’s the most tolerable of the lot.

Harry and Hermione exchanged identical looks of concern at what they’re hearing. They don’t want to draw conclusions based on a few representatives, but they can’t help it. Ron and Ginny have more experience dealing with curse breakers than the both of them.

“They seem to like Fred and George, though,” Ginny said to the two of them. She saw her boyfriend’s silent exchange with Hermione and tried to appease their growing concerns.

“Well, not all of us can be like the twins,” Ron said darkly. “They were impressed by the magic that those two were using for their joke products.”

“Then we’ll just have to impress them with ours,” Harry said as confidently as he could. He’s got confidence in his skill as an Auror. If skill is what it takes for his future colleagues to not look down on him, then skill is what they will get.

“You make it sound like it’s as easy as performing a Levitating Charm,” Hermione said worriedly. “These are curse breakers we are talking about, and it’s one of the hardest jobs in the Wizarding World. They may be arrogant if Ron and Ginny’s words are true, but they had the right to be. You need to have NEWTs in Charms, Transfiguration, Defense, Potions, Arithmancy, and Ancient Runes to get past the door of the applications office, and that’s not a guarantee that you will be accepted.” She remembered the pamphlet she read about curse breakers when she was deliberating about career choices in her 4th year, and Curse Breaker had the hardest requirements she’d seen.

“They may have the hardest jobs in the planet, but our jobs aren’t something to laugh at either,” Harry said with as much conviction as he could muster. “Ron and I capture dark wizards, and you, Hermione, deal with magical creatures which can be as dangerous as dealing with dark magic. We have as much right to be arrogant as them.”

Ron perked up at his friend’s pep talk. “You’re right. I am a dark wizard catcher. I eat dark magic for breakfast.”

“That’s the spirit!” Harry said. “You show them what you got, buddy.”

“Those curse breakers won’t know what hit them!” Ron continued, pumping his fists in the air.

“Well, I just hope that the two Weasleys are wrong and they will be all smiles and sunshine at us when we meet them.” Hermione said before sipping her tea.

“I am not wrong!” said Ron at the same time Ginny said, “no longer a Weasley.”

* * *

Draco Malfoy checked himself in the mirror one last time even though he knew that there’s nothing wrong with how he looks today. This is his first day in his new job and his nerves were a mess. It’s been 4 years since he left England for France, 3 years since he started his job as a curse breaker in Italy. And now he’s back in his homeland, about to start in a new job, in the Ministry of Magic of all places.

When he started working as a curse breaker in the tombs and temples of Italy, he immediately experienced excitement and adrenaline. The danger and the challenge that the job gave him was unlike anything that he felt before, made him aware of every breath that he takes and every beat that his heart makes, made him feel very much alive. But the feeling eventually faded as he gained experience and wisdom from every tomb and temple that he entered. At the start, every curse and wards he encountered were very much new and unfamiliar, but at the last six months turned repetitive and unexciting. He longed for the uncertainty every time he enters a new ruin to come back, the awareness that one wrong step, one wrong spell might be your last, but it never came back. Every spell was similar or identical to ones that he encountered before. He no longer felt the challenge of solving a complex and dangerous puzzle, the exhilaration when he broke a curse giving access to the riches that it protected.

So when a representative from the British Ministry of Magic approached him, and told him of a job offer, he immediately accepted without a second thought. All he could think at the time was that the new environment might just be what he needed for the joy he had when he first started curse breaking to come back.

Now, as he checked for wrinkles and misplaced buttons on his shirt, and contemplated if his hair is too casual for the formal atmosphere that his new working place will undoubtedly possess, he wonders if he made the right decision to take the job. He’s sure that no one has forgotten his involvement in the last war, even though it’s been four years since then, and he’s willing to bet his whole inheritance that a significant portion of those who remember still bear ill will towards him. Right after his graduation from Hogwarts after retaking 7th year, he immediately left for France to go under training for curse breaking, so this will be the first time in four years that he will face the English population once more.

“Does Master Draco want something?” Snitch, his house elf, asked for the nth time from behind him. The elf hasn’t seen and served his master for years, and has been tailing him ever since he got back, asking every five minutes if he need anything. He would have found it endearing under other circumstances, but right now he just find it annoying.

“No, Snitch, thanks,” he answered the elf. Deciding that he’s stalled his day enough, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath in an attempt to calm his nerves. Unfortunately, it didn’t work. If anything, it just further tightened the knot that has been in his stomach ever since he woke up this morning. With a sigh, he collected his things, attached his new Identification Card into this chest pocket along with his pen, and started towards his door. Before he reached it though, a pop sounded in his room as Dewdrop, her mother’s house elf, Apparated into his room.

“Master Draco,” the elf greeted him with a deep bow. “Mistress Narcissa and Master Lucius wants to invites Master Draco to joins them at breakfast, sir.”  
Draco drew out another sigh at what the elf said. His mother has been ecstatic ever since she learned that he was coming home and is determined to spend as much time with him as she can. And she seem to think that every event that happens in the day is worthy of drinking tea for. His father on the other hand, wasted no time on trying to make him involved in the family businesses and their family’s place in the Wizengamot. This breakfast is bound to be no different.

“Thanks, Dewdrop,” he said to the old elf, making the elf’s ears preen in satisfaction. “Please tell my mother that I’m on my way.”

“Yes, master Draco,” the elf bowed to him. “Right away, Master Draco,” she bowed once more before disapparating with a loud pop.

“Snitch, can you please clean up my room after you had your breakfast?” he requested to his house elf.

“Of course, Master Draco,” Snitch responded with a deep bow of his own.

“Thanks, Snitch,” Draco nodded to the elf with a small smile, making the elf beam with pleasure. “That will be all.”

It took him longer than usual to arrive in the dining room, it’s been years since he’d walked the halls of the Malfoy Manor and he had to back track his steps a few times. His mother and father are already seated when he entered. His father’s elf, Boot, is also present, ready to work on any request from them.

“Draco,” Lucius greeted him. “So glad that you could join us for breakfast.”

“Father,” he said in greeting as he approached the table. “Mother.”

“Draco,” Narcissa greeted back as he sat across her. “Make sure that you eat enough for breakfast. You’re bound to be very busy today, with the attention that you newly created Office is getting.”

“I think we would be having a pretty light workload for this week,” he answered as he took a healthy serving of breakfast. “People would probably be adjusting to the new protocols, it would be a few days before things start going smoothly.”

“Nonetheless, make sure that you eat enough,” his mother responded. “The Ministry cafeteria serves less than stellar dishes, if my memory serves me right. One would think that the Ministry would at least be able to employ a decent kitchen staff, with the taxes that we are paying them.”

“I believe that would be too much of an expectation to hold them into,” his father said. “If the departments couldn’t even deal with spells and has to result to either destruction of items or containment procedures. After all, Draco wouldn’t be working in the Ministry today if they are using our taxes efficiently, would it?”

“I’m sure they’re alright,” he said. “It’s just that curse breaking is not part of the training curriculum for many Ministry positions, that’s why they’re having a hard time terminating spells.”

“That’s why your job is important,” his mother said. “so you would have to take care of yourself if you are to do your job in a spectacular fashion.”

“I am taking care of myself, Mother,” he reassured her. “I would have died ten times over in the past 3 years I’ve been a Curse Breaker if I wasn’t.”

“You think that you are taking care of yourself,” his mother corrected. “you can’t expect me to think that you’ve been having complete meals and sleep while you are working when Merlin knows you haven’t been able to do so while you’re in Hogwarts.”

“Now, wife,” his father gently chided. “I’m sure Draco is making sure to keep himself healthy. We can’t coddle him now like we did when he was still a child.”

“Can you blame me?” his mother demanded. “Draco’s home for the first time in four years. And in those four years, he’s been traipsing around in Italy jumping from ruin to ruin, dealing with more than every awful and fatal curses that I can imagine! And now he’s back and instead of getting a safer job, he takes one where he has to deal with curses that even aurors weren’t able to deactivate!”

“Mother, I told you several times before, you have nothing to worry about,” he gently tried to reassure his mother. “I’ve been trained well, and I make sure that I do my job as safely as possible and this will be no different.”

“On another matter,” Lucius changed the subject, pausing in eating his breakfast to stare at him. “The Wizengamot will convene on Wednesday, and I am hoping that you would go on my behalf.”

“I’m still not in possession of my schedule,” he informed him.

“Then I hope you would do so when your schedule allows it.”

“I’m not sure if it’s wise to have me represent the family in the Wizengamot,” Draco said to his father. “I’ve been out of the country for almost half a decade father, there will be laws now that I would probably be not aware of. And curse breaking is a full time job, I don’t think I will have much of a free time specially once things started picking up.”

“I’m sure you will have find a way to do it, specially if you are determined to do so.”

“It’s not about determination, it’s about feasibility,” Draco countered. “And I don’t see why you’re having the need for me to attend the Wizengamot. It’s not as if you have an issue in time management.”

“I just think it’s time to start introducing you to the ways of the Wizengamot,” his father said calmly. “The Malfoy family has held a seat in the Wizengamot for 7 centuries. It’s your legacy, along with your inheritance and the family businesses.”

“Why don’t you talk about this on another time?” Narcissa requested, effectively interrupting the argument. “Let’s just have a nice breakfast for now. Anything that you want to talk to Draco about can be brought up at some other time.”

“Of course, Mother,” Draco agreed immediately, thankful for the interruption.

The rest of the meal was spent in silence interspersed with small talk. The subject about the Wizengamot was never brought up, of which Draco was extremely grateful for. Once breakfast is over, he gave his mother a kiss on the cheek and nodded to his father, then went straight to the nearest fireplace.

Before he takes a handful of Floo powder, he took a moment to recollect and prepare himself for the day ahead. He put on an expressionless face, something that he’s done very often in his youth but hasn’t done frequently in the past years, and was pleasantly surprised at how easy and familiar it felt. Once he deemed himself ready, he took a handful of Floo powder, threw it into the fireplace, shouted his destination, and let himself be taken away by the swirls of green flame.


	2. Welcome Back Part 2

Draco stepped into the Ministry Atrium with the practiced grace that’s been ingrained to him since childhood. The place was currently littered with ministry workers entering work, and quite a few journalists hanging around near the elevators, surely here for the opening of OSD.

He was halfway across the Atrium when the journalists noticed him.

It was almost comical, witnessing the scene unfold. One female worker walking near him realized who he was, then tapped her companion and started whispering with each other and staring at him with wide eyes. Like a wave, people in the Atrium started doing the same action until it reached the journalists.

Someone in a higher plane must have been looking out for him this morning, there’s no other explanation for it. He had just entered on of the elevators before the journalists got over their shock and started flocking towards him shouting questions over each other, their photographer companions flashing their cameras at his direction. The elevator operator, bless his fast reaction time, pressed the close button before the journalists can enter, effectively shutting out the nosy leeches.

The operator gave him cold look, as a ringing silence descended over the occupants of the enclosed space. “3rd floor?” he asked frostily, correctly deducing his destination.

“Yes, please,” he answered, not perturbed by his attitude towards him. It’s within his expectations. He would have been surprised if people react to him warmly today. “And, thanks,” he added. It’s common courtesy to express gratitude even in the smallest acts of kindness, or so he heard.

The operator snorted. “A Malfoy saying thanks. The world must be ending soon,” he muttered. 

Draco let the slight jab go. He owes the bloke, after all.

He stepped off at 3rd floor and went straight to the designated section for his new work place. The entrance is a double glass doors with the name of the office minted at the middle, it opened to a adequately spacious reception area, most of which is occupied by rows of chairs. At the end of the room opposite to the doors is the reception desk, currently manned by two receptionists: a young woman with auburn curls tied into a bun a back of her head and a dark beautiful woman with high cheekbones and long straight hair.

He approached the dark woman and glanced at her nameplate. “Hi, Wendy. I’m Draco Malfoy, one of the new curse breakers,” he introduced himself.

“Yes, I know you,” she said, with an arched eyebrow. “The office is through there,” she pointed at a glossed door at the end of the reception desk. “Once you enter, you will see a small desk where you will have to log in. Just swipe your ID on the small frame, it is enchanted to identify your ID and log your time of entry. You are to do the same when you log out at the end of the day. Your name is placed on your designated desk, Cubicle 13.” She informed him in a series of instructions.

“Yes, thank you,” Draco said with a nod before going into the door and doing what she told him.

Beyond the office door is the small table mentioned by Wendy, and after that, is the main office area. On the left wall is a door to the comfort rooms, and on the right are a series of doors with a signs saying ‘Examination Rooms,’ ‘Muggle Analyst’s Office,’ and ‘Magical Analyst’s Office.” On the wall opposite to the entrance is an elevated walkway, accessible by short stairways at both ends. At the walk way are three doors, one each for the Head’s Office, Assistant Head’s Office, and the Conference Room.

The office main area is more spacious than the reception room, dominated by cubicles arranged in several squares composed of four cubicles. At the moment, only half of the cubicles were occupied by who he assumed wee his new co-workers, some of which he recognized. There are several renowned British curse breakers in the room. At cubicle 1 is a small redhead named Lukas Tempe, famous for his work at a burial ground in the northernmost part of the British Isles. According to what he heard, the curse in the burial ground caused almost a hundred Inferi to burst out of the grounds and attack whoever entered the burial area and Tempe dealt with all of them all by himself. On cubicle 2, beside Tempe, is a woman in her late twenties with her hair dyed in a bright shade of pink named Jane dela Vega, best known for her work on the underwater shrine a few miles off the coast of Japan. At cubicle 21, was a tall guy with spectacles and serious expression named Patrick Hirositsuji, known for his work on a ghost ship in South Africa. It seems like Shacklebolt is really serious about this office.

He found his cubicle, along with a nice surprise. One of the cubicles beside him, cubicle 4, is occupied by Nathan Yoshinori, a well built, tall guy with fair skin, brown hair, and blue eyes. Nathan was a fellow curse breaker that he frequently worked with in Italy. He that studied in Hogwarts a year below him, but with the war interfering with his supposed last year, he had to retake it and ending with the two of them graduating at the same time.

When he first worked with Nathan, their interactions can be described as awkward at best, downright antagonistic if you’re being awfully truthful. They found it hard to find common ground between them and eventually, their superior lost his patience with them and forced them to work together in many cases. It was a disaster at first, but multiple near death experiences and saving each other’s asses eventually made them look past the negative feeling towards each other and became good friends.

“Imagine my surprise when I came in this morning, and found your name on the desk next to mine,” Nathan told him as greeting as he placed his sling bag on his desk.

“Imagine my relief,” he countered as he took as seat, approving of the comfort of the seat. “At least I wouldn’t have to walk past several desks to have someone to talk to.”

“Yeah, we can’t have something like what happened in the Atrium happen in here multiple times a day,” Nathan said with a grin.

“How did you know about that?” he asked in surprise. Nathan had been here before him, making it impossible for him to have witnessed what happened to him in the Atrium.

“I guessed,” Nathan said with a light laugh. “You come out of the blue in the Ministry after almost half a decade of absence, of course everyone will lose their shit. I’m actually looking forward to reading the paper tomorrow.”

“Ugh,” he groaned as he imagined what would be written tomorrow.

Nathan laughed good-naturedly at his friend’s predicament, but took sympathy and changed the topic. “It looks like Shacklebolt is really serious about this office. Several people here are renowned for one thing or another. Look, Susan West just came in, isn’t she the curse breaker who worked in Russia that dispatched that notorious group of 13 tomb raiders?”

Draco glanced at what Nathan is looking at found that he is right. “Yeah. These people wouldn’t be cheap. I wonder how much they offered the Head and Assistant Head.”

“Pretty huge,” Nathan said. “You wouldn’t believe who the Assistant Head is.”

“Who?” he asked curiously.

“Bill Weasley,” Nathan said with a grin.

“Seriously?” he exclaimed unbelievingly. Bill was their Head Curse Breaker when they were working in Italy. He heard the guy settled down for a desk job before the war, but the call of adventure is too strong in him and went back to the field a few years later. “Is he sure than he can last this time?”

“I guess we’ll see,” Nathan shrugged.

At that moment, someone sat down on the desk beside Nathan’s. Both men assessed the newcomer. He’s well-built, fair-skinned, blue-eyed like Nathan but with raven hair. “Hey,” the new guy greeted them. “I’m Niles Hernandez.”

“Nathan Yoshinori,” Nathan supplied with a smile

“Draco Malfoy,” he introduced himself warily. Aside from Nathan, this Niles and another yet unknown person will be working beside him for the foreseeable future. He hopes that they will not be as hostile as he expected.

“I know who you are,” Niles said as he assessed Draco. “You’ve made quite a name for yourself ever since the war ended.”

“You’re Draco Malfoy,” Nathan said, confirming what Niles had said. “You’ll be talked about no matter what career path you take.”

“Nothing I heard about you is bad,” Niles said. “Well, about curse breaking.”

“At least, there’s nothing bad they can say about the way I do my job,” he said wryly.

“Yeah, I’ve heard about your work in that Temple of Pluto a few years back,” a new voice chimed into the conversation. “Using Reparo on the vault door to banish the conjured beast that’s protecting it is genius.”

All three turned towards the direction of the new voice. A well-built, tan man, with green eyes and black hair is now standing in the cubicle next to him, presumably its designated occupant. Suddenly, Draco felt insecure, a feeling than he don’t feel often. All three of his office neighbors look like they frequently visit the gym. He’s well fit, if he do say so himself, but he’s got the impression that he would look like a beanpole next to his new officemates.

“You must be the guy on cubicle 14,” Niles said to the newcomer. “I’m Niles Hernandez, the brown hair is Nathan Yoshinori, and that’s Draco Malfoy,” he introduced the three of them.

“Nice to meet you,” the newcomer said with a lopsided grin. “I’m Allen Flynn.”

“You’re not the same Allen Flynn that unlocked that golden pyramid in Central America, are you?” Niles asked.

“Yeah, I am,” Allen said answered proudly. “And you’re the same Niles Hernandez who worked on that Datu’s cave in the Philippines, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, I am,” Niles answered with a modest smile.

“You’re Nathan Yoshinori, the guy who broke the curse that causes madness in that grove dedicated to Ceres,” he gestured to Nathan, before turning to him. “And you, Draco, are the guy who used Reparo to banish conjured magical beasts in Italy,” Allen turned his attention back to him.

“Is that what I’m most known for?” he demanded lightly. “Cause I’ve had more interesting cases than that one.”

“Oh, yeah,” Allen nodded thoughtfully. “Your work on that floating temple of Jupiter is also amazing. But in my opinion, your work on the temple of Pluto is the best. How did you even think of that while fighting for your life against those beasts?”

“Well, the conjuring spells on those beasts were activated when the cover of the vault was broken,” he answered with a shrug. “So I figured that if you reversed the damage on the cover, the spell would deactivate and the beasts will disappear.”

“That was awesome,” Allen told him with a wide smile. Draco had a feeling that this guy is a natural at compliments.

“How about you, Nile,” Allen turned to Nile. “How did you –“

Their conversation was interrupted when the door of the Head’s Office opened giving him his first look of the Department Head. Gregory Terramesa is a very tall and muscular man, probably in his late forties or early fifties, with white hair and beard and dark eyes. He has a very strict look which, combined with the suit and tie that he’s wearing, makes him look very intimidating.

“Seriously,” Draco whispered severely in Nathan’s direction. “How many steroid junkies did they hire for this department?”

“Steroid junkies?” Nathan whispered back, confused at what Draco is complaining about.

Behind Terramessa, is the Assistant Head Bill Weasley, which looks pretty much the opposite of the Office Head. He still has his long, Weasley red hair tied into the back of his head and his tooth earring, but instead of the casual clothes he used to wear when they were working together in Italy, he’s wearing formal clothing. Or he attempted to. His jacket is open, his shirt untucked and the unbuttoned at the top, and his tie not made properly. He’s as informal as he could get while attempting to be formal, but it was blast of fresh and familiar air after Terramosa’s intense appearance.

“Excuse me, everyone,” Terramesa’s deep voice reverberated across the main office area with ease. “Would all of you convene in the conference room, Assistant Head Weasley and I have a few words for all of you before we formally start for the day.”

After a few beats, everyone in the room started moving towards the small stairs and into the conference room. Draco and his neighbors are close to the stairs, so they are among the firsts one to enter the conference room and take their seats.

Once everyone is in the room, Terramesa started talking. “Good morning everyone. As I hope all of you already know, I am Gregory Terramesa, the Head of the newly created Office for Spell Deactivation, and this,” he gestured to Bill Weasley beside him, “is Mr. William Weasley, the Assistant Head,” Bill smiled and waved at the group. “And we would like to personally thank everyone for accepting this big task given to all of us.”

“When Minister Shacklebolt was working on the groundwork of the OSD law, he immediately realized that for this office to effectively achieve the goals that he had planned to place on our shoulders, he would need to hire the best curse breakers that Britain has to offer. And that’s what all 36 of you are, each and every one of you were handpicked by both me and Mr. Weasley and was deemed as the best among your peers. And I’m telling you, no group of curse breakers in the world has ever held this much talent.”

“And that’s why we have the highest expectation for all of you. We expect each and every single one of you to tackle every case placed in your hands in a way that upholds the standards expected of world-class curse breakers, and more. For starting today, you will not be working to collect treasures. You are no longer working at the tombs, or temples, or any other sites that you’ve worked in before, wherein mistakes will only affect yourself and your colleagues. Starting today, you’ll be working in a setting wherein the preservation and quality of life is at stake, wherein your mistakes will affect not only yourself and the faces you see every day, but other people as well. People who, even though are strangers to you, aren’t capable of protecting themselves from the dangers you’re protecting them from. So stick this to your minds, and stick it well: you are now working for something bigger than personal glory. You are now working for the good of the people, so make sure you do it excellently.”

Terramesa let his heavy words descend over every occupant of the room. Looking at each of them in the eye to make sure that he’d driven is point home. When it was Draco’s turn to be stared at by Terramesa, he looked back at him, showing determination on his face. He has no intention of doing this job poorly.

Once he’s made sure he’d looked at everyone, he started speaking once more. “Now, to brief you of the work here, Mr. Weasley will give a short discussion about our basic working protocol.” He stepped aside to give the floor to Bill.

Bill stepped forward and threw a smile into his audience. “Well, what a light-hearted way to start our first meeting,” he said with good-natured sarcasm, diffusing the heavy tension a significant bit, drawing a few chuckles from the audience.

“Our initial working protocol is simple enough,” he started. “All of the cases referred to us will be processed by our three secretaries, Mr. Hiroki Nakahara, Ms. Jeanetta Dy, and Mr. Nestor Beachwood,” he gesture towards three people standing together at one side of the room. “Then they will designate cases to you guys based on who’s available. We have our very own examination rooms available when you need it. I have personally watched over the construction of every one of them, so rest assured that every room has the necessary enchantments to prevent external factors from interfering during your examinations. We also have analysts Skipp Gordinski for magical records and Keith Golconda for Muggle records when you need those. Once you’re done with the case, you are to make a case report and submit back to our secretaries for record keeping. We will be evaluating this protocol in three months to see if there are problems in the structure and make the necessary adjustments. That’s it, basically. Any questions?”

He looked around the room if there was anyone with inquiries regarding the things discussed. When none came forward, Bill gave them all and encouraging smile and finished the meeting. “If there is none, your first cases should be waiting for you at your cubicles. Most of you will be working on cases that are under containment procedures by the Ministry, though some of you will be given running cases. You are expected to be at your destinations at 8:30. Good luck to you all. I, for one, am sure that you’ll do us proud.”

There was a bustle of activity right after the end of the meeting, everyone seemed to be fired up after Terramesa’s intense opening words and Weasley’s easy-going encouragement and confidence. True to Bill’s word, folders were waiting for everyone at their desks when they went back to it. But, Draco’s eyebrows curled together when he saw that there is no folder waiting for him at his desk. Instead, a slip of paper was waiting expectantly, informing him that the case details will be given to him in the meeting that will happen in 15 minutes. In the Auror office of all places. He frowned at the slip of paper, it seems like he got one of the running cases. He was hoping that he would get one of those under containment. The office will be under close watch by the news outlets for the next weeks, and the running cases will be the ones to be scrutinized the most.

“Cool! I’ve got clay dough that can mould itself to tiny soldiers and become an army,” Flynn exclaimed. “This is going to be a walk in the park.”

“Damn, you got an easy one,” Hernandes told him. “They gave me a Misuse of Magic case. Apparently this student made a one-way link to the top three students so that she can score high in her O.W.L.s. She was caught when the checkers for plagiarism found her answers to be similar word for word to ones she’s linked to and was brought in for questioning. She’s been on house arrest ever since and no one, even the offender, knows how to break it.”

“I’ve got a containment case,” Nathan said. Apparently they’re sharing cases now. “An operating room in a Muggle hospital that conjures its own operating staff when a patient comes in.”

All three of his neighbors turned to him, waiting for him to share his case. Not that there’s anything he could share. “I don’t know yet. I just got a piece of paper telling me to join Auror Bill Allente’s meeting in the Auror Office at in 30 minutes.” He showed them the paper for proof.

“Damn, that’s tough luck,” Nathan said in sympathy. Seems like he also deduced the amount of scrutiny this case is going to receive. “A running case. And an Auror case to boot.”

“It’s like they’re making you the face of the office or something,” Niles said bluntly, making Draco turn to him with a sharp look. But Niles’ face didn’t show any malice, he’s just saying things as it is.

Draco sighed. He can’t fathom what’s running through Terramesa and Bill’s minds when they approved this case to be assigned to him. It’s not like there’s a shortage of people in the room who could take the role of being the face of the Office. “Well, wish me luck,” he said, standing up to leave. “I hope that this turns out to be a pretty easy one.”

All four of them stood up to proceed to their respective sites. Nathan and Niles split up with them at the elevators. Both of them are going to the Atrium to take the Floo to their respective sites. Allen and Draco took the stairs to the 2nd floor, where the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office and the Auror office are situated.

Before Draco knew it, Allen had said goodbye to him at the door of his destination. Shortly after, he’s standing before the Auror Office reception desk.

“Good morning,” he greeted the receptionist, a middle aged man with brown hair and freckles. The man eyes widened when he looked at him. “I’m Draco Malfoy, from the Office of Spell Deactivation. I’m supposed to be in Auror Bill Allente’s meeting.” He showed his ID to him for confirmation.

“You’re the curse breaker for Auror Allente’s case?” the receptionist asked, seeming to be in disbelief that Draco is standing before him.

“Yes, I am,” he answered, patiently waiting for his shock to pass.

A few seconds passed and the receptionist is still staring at him.

“This is where you tell me where the meeting is,” he prodded, hoping to push the man into reaction.

“Yes, yes, of course,” the receptionist got out of his daze, but still very much rattled. “Uhmm, the meeting is in the first door you see on the right wall.”

“Thank you,” he told him before immediately going for the door in question.

The Auror office is similar to the OSD but louder and with more people. Draco entered the room and immediately everyone’s attention turned to him. Everybody in the room just stopped what they were doing and stared at him. Whoever they were expecting to arrive from the OSD, he most certainly isn’t it.

Suddenly, a young man with an enraged expression marched up to him and pressed his wand on his throat, effectively stopping him from walking further.

“What in the name of Merlin is a scumbag like you doing here?” the man demanded, his face a deep shade of red.

Now there’s the hostile reaction I was expecting all morning, Draco thought. He kept his calm though, maintaining a stoic expression to show that the man and his wand don’t bother him in the least.

“If you must know, I’m from the Office for Spell Deactivation,” he told the man, putting as much sugar as he could into his voice. “I’m here because I was told that I must be in a meeting with Auror Bill Allente.”

“Like hell I will believe that you’re working here,” the man spat. “The Ministry would never hire the likes of you!”

“And yet, here I am,” he retorted, then sent the man a smirk. “Did you think that I would have gotten past the fireplaces, the Atrium, elevator, and hallway without being apprehended if I wasn’t supposed to be here?”

“Why you son of a – “ the man growled as his hand tightened its hold on his wand. The man is no doubt planning to curse him in front of all these people. Draco prepared to defend himself, but it wasn’t necessary. A hand appeared and held the man’s arm firmly.

Draco and the red-face man turned towards the hand’s owner, which turned out to be Ernie Macmillan, Draco’s batchmate from Hogwarts.

“Don’t do it, Marshall,” Macmillan told the now named man firmly.

“Tell me why I shouldn’t hex this sorry excuse of a curse breaker to Antarctica and back,” Marshall now growled at Macmillan.

Macmillan regarded his co-worker calmly. “Because if he is indeed from the Office for Spell Deactivation and you assault him, the least punishment that you will receive is a suspension, the worst, expulsion.”

If possible, Marshall’s hold on his wand tightened even further. After a tense second, he withdrew his wand from Draco’s throat.

“Good choice,” Draco can help but throw another verbal jab.

“You may have convinced the Minister that you’re a changed man, Malfoy,” Marshall glared back at him. “But you don’t convince me. Men like you and your father never change.” At that, he turned away and stomped back into his desk.

“Macmillan!” Draco greeted his former schoolmate. “Thanks for your assistance, no matter how unnecessary it may have been.”

“Malfoy,” Macmillan greeted back with wary eyes. “I know you’re most likely telling the truth, but would you mind showing me your ID? Just for confirmation, I hope you understand.”

“I don’t mind,” he said, giving him his ID for inspection. Once Macmillan was satisfied that he was indeed here for Ministry business, he returned it back to him.

“So,” Draco said after a few beats of awkward silence. “Auror, huh?”

Macmillan stiffened. “Yeah. You’ve got a problem with it?”

“None, actually,” he quickly appeased the guy. “Just pleasantly surprised that I was right in what I assumed what your career after school would be.”

Macmillan opened his mouth to respond back, but the door to the meeting room opened, revealing a man with spectacles and dark hair with grey streaks.

“There you are, Mr. Malfoy,” the man said when his sight landed on him. “I was wondering if you had gotten lost.” This must be Bill Allente, the guy whose meeting he was supposed to be in.

“My apologies, sir,” he said politely. “I bumped into Macmillan here, who is my schoolmate back in Hogwarts, and we talked a little bit. I hope I’m not late?” he asked, even though he knows that he’s not.

“Not at all,”Allente answered good-naturedly. “I understand, I know how it is when one hasn’t been home for a very long time. But, I’m afraid I would have to ask you to come in already. We’re about to start the meeting.”

“Of course,” he agreed immediately. He turned to Macmillan before following Allente into the room. “Macmillan,’ he said to him with a nod.

“Malfoy,” Macmillan said back with a nod of his own.

With their interaction officially over, Draco went past the door. Beyond it is a room with just enough space for a long table, chairs and a board. Along with Allente, were three people: one woman and two men. The woman sitting at the head of the table was easily recognizable with her aristocratic face and shoulder-length blond hair. She is Amber Angeles, the Head Auror. The last two occupants were also easily recognizable and made him want to curse Gregory Terramesa and Bill Weasley down to hell and back. The two men with Angeles and Allente were Ron Weasley and Harry Potter. And if their presence in the room is any indication, he’s likely to be working with them on this case.


	3. Welcome Back Part 3

Ron was right. The OSD was indeed called into their case. Harry hasn’t even heated up his chair this morning when Bill Allente swooped down on his desk and gave him bad news: Head Auror Amber Angeles will be watching over their case for the foreseeable future. This development, though something that he has already foreseen due to it being a high-profile case, effectively soured his mood. Amber Angeles is an excellent Auror and boss, and it certainly didn’t hurt that she’s easy to the eyes, despite her being two decades his senior. But anyone who worked under her for a significant period of time will agree with Harry if he said that Amber Angeles is a spawn of the devil. She’s a no nonsense woman with zero tolerance for what she calls ‘toddler’s thinking.’ She expects the best from her subordinates and makes her displeasure very clear when someone’s work performance didn’t meet unreasonably high standards.

And as if he hadn’t ruined Harry’s mood enough for the day, Allente delivered another bad news: a curse breaker from the newly created Office for Spell Deactivation, or OSD for short, will be joining them this morning and for the rest of the case. Though he’s trying not to be prejudiced about them, Harry can’t help but be worried about the people that Ron’s referred to for the past few days as ‘demonic nifflers on pants.’ His friend seems to be pretty convinced that they will turn out to be the arrogant, know-it-alls that looks down on other people’s jobs, and Harry praying to every god of every religion in the world that he’s wrong. He really needs this case to be done already and having a co-worker turn out to be exactly what his friend thinks they will be wouldn’t speed things up.

Right now, he’s in the waiting room with Ron, Allente, and Angeles for the curse breaker to arrive. Ron has been muttering under his breath for a good three minutes now and Angeles is looking at him disapprovingly. Ron, in a rare moment of defiance to Angeles, has been ignoring her looks of disapproval.

“Shouldn’t he be here by now?” Ron demanded out of the blue.

“It’s not 8:30 yet,” he reminded him. Its 8:25 and the meeting will be starting at 8:30. But Ron’s acting like the guy they’re waiting for is an hour late.

“Well, he’s cutting it pretty close,” Ron snarked. “It’s their first day of office. Shouldn’t they be trying to impress us and should have been here an hour ago?”

“Will you calm down a little,” he said as he cast a worried glance at the Auror Head who’s now glaring at Ron.

“I am calm,” Ron insisted with gritted teeth. “He’s not here yet and he’s already showing us how he thinks he’s so much better than us, making us wait for him as if we’re servants!”

“May I remind you Mr. Weasley, that you’ve been late to work 5 times this month, and you were supposed to be in meetings in three of those five,” Angeles told Ron as Allente excused himself out of the room for reasons unknown. “Can I assume that you also see us as servants?”

Ron shrank back from Angeles. “That’s different,” he protested meekly.

“Is that so?” Angeles asked with a dangerous gleam in her eyes. “And pray tell me, the difference between this man’s case and yours?”

“Well, you see here, I mean,” Ron floundered to answer Angeles’ question.

“I’ll tell you the difference,” Angeles didn’t wait for Ron to form a coherent answer. “The difference is that I’ve had 3 years of evaluations on you, and I can declare with confidence that though you have the potential to be a good Auror, Mr. Weasley, you fail to show me your dedication to your job. You’re late at an average of 9 times a month, and your case reports are almost always late. While, the curse breaker we are waiting for, can’t be considered late yet, and since it’s his first day in his job, his character and work performance can’t be assessed yet. So, if you’re going to ask me, if anyone’s wasting our time here, what name do you think will I say?”

Ron, if possible, shrank even further away from Angeles without leaving his seat. “I helped create the training program that you underwent Mr. Weasley, so I am sure that developing a generalization over a group of people that you haven’t even interacted with isn’t part of it. So please, take that way of thinking out of your ass and throw it out the window as soon as possible.”

“And, may I add, since it’s evident since the Ministerial Order was announced that you resent the members of the OSD, that you’ve had 11 cases that involved cursed objects, and all of those 11 cases went to containment procedures. You are part of the reason why we are in situation.”

“Now, ma’am,” Harry said in his friend’s defense. “I think it’s unfair to blame just Ron in what’s happening. There are over a thousand cases under containment, and Ron’s 11 is a small part of them.”

Harry found himself under Angeles’ intense glare. “I didn’t say that it’s Mr. Weasley’s lone fault, Mr. Potter. Everyone who worked and is currently working in this office had played their part to this situation. I, myself, had a number of cases which ended up having a cursed object in containment, 29 to be exact. The point that I’m trying to make here is not one of us isn’t at fault for what’s happening, and the best we can do is to accept that the Office for Spell Deactivation is here to stay for the foreseeable future and graciously live with it.”

“Of course, ma’am,” he agreed with her boss, elbowing Ron’s nearest body part, urging him to do the same. Angeles has a point. The OSD is here to stay in the foreseeable future and there is nothing they could do other than try to make the best out of it.

Allente returned before more can be said between the three of them. Angeles, Ron, and him turned towards the door to have a first look of the curse breaker that would be their working colleague for the rest of the case.

Harry felt his jaw drop when the man came into view. Behind Allente is a man around his age and body built but taller, with white blond hair, pale skin and gray eyes. Harry would recognize that face anywhere, no matter how much time has passed. 6 years of hatred and rivalry between the two of them ensured that.

Draco Malfoy is standing before him, his eyes studying the occupants of the room. Those grey eyes widened a fraction once it rested on both him and Ron, but that’s all the indication that he recognized them.

“Oh, dear Merlin. No.” he heard himself whisper to no one.

Angeles’ desire for cooperation seems to have devolved from incredibly hard to impossible all of a sudden.

“What the hell are you doing here?!” Ron demanded, standing abruptly, making his chair crash to the floor.

“Mr. Weasley!” Angeles reprimanded Ron with a sharp voice that he knew too well.

“I’m the curse breaker from the Office for Spell Deactivation. I received a note this morning that I am to attend this meeting,” Malfoy answered in a bored tone at the same time as Angeles’ reprimand.

Ron just ignored his boss, his full focus on the curse breaker. “There is no way in hell that the Ministry will hire a Death eater like you!”

“And yet, here I am,” Malfoy responded with a bored tone yet again.

“Yeah, for what?” Ron demanded. “To gather information for your buddies? To generate discourse among us so you can destroy us from the inside?”

“Mr. Weasley!” Angeles shouted once again, standing up and slamming his hands on the table. “You will stop this ridiculous behavior right now!”

“Me?” Ron said incredulously. “What about him? He’s a Death Eater initiated at 16, sneaked his kin into Hogwarts, and is indirectly responsible of the death of Albus Dumbledore and injuries to at least 6 people!”

“I would like to remind you that criminal records and rule breaking, though part of the criteria, isn’t the only factor for employment in the Ministry,” Angles said with a clipped tone.

“Well, they should,” Ron retorted.

“Unfortunately for you, you are not in a position to change the Ministry’s policies on employment,” Angeles retorted back. “Now, are you going to sit back down and shut up, or am I going to have to ask you to step back from this case?”

Ron and Angeles stared hard at each other, willing the other to back down. When it’s evident that Ron isn’t going to back down and probably suspended for insubordination, Harry decided to intervene. He held his friend’s shoulder, making him break eye contact with their Head and look at him. Harry shook his head at Ron, telling him silently to let things go. Ron’s hard expression turned into one of disbelief, then into resignation. With a sigh, he retrieved his fallen chair and sat back on it, his face showing everyone in the room the injustice that he felt regarding the situation.

Bill Allente nodded approvingly at his younger partner’s choice of action. He’s been Ron Weasley’s partner now for 4 years and the young man has always had a problematic tendency with controlling his emotions, which, with his sense of inferiority, hinders him to be the great Auror that he has the potential to be. He had tried to take out those hindrances from him for years now and he thinks that he’s made some progress. But there are still instances when Weasley’s tendencies comes rising back up and he starts looking like the newbie Auror that he was years ago.  
Instances like this one.

Not that he could blame the guy for reacting poorly. Draco Malfoy was his and Potter’s school nemesis. Plus, his family had been supporters of the Dark Lord during his reign of terror. He can recall that during the time when the Death Eaters had taken control over the Ministry, Potter, Weasley, and Granger had been taken captive in the Malfoy Manor, where Granger had been tortured by Malfoy’s aunt, Bellatrix Lestrange.

Anyone with a right state of mind can see that there is bad blood between the three youngest occupants of the room, so Bill Allente is wondering what going on inside Terramessa and Bill Weasley’s brain when he approved of Draco Malfoy’s assignment to this case, knowing full well that Harry Potter and Ron Weasley are part of the team dealing with the case.

“Mr. Malfoy, welcome to the team,” Angeles greeted Malfoy, rising from her seat at the head of the table and walks towards Malfoy, her hand offered for a handshake. “I would like to apologize for Auror Weasley’s behaviour. Rest assured, his misconduct will be dealt with the proper sanction.”

Malfoy shook his hand with a charming smile. “Thank, Madam. You don’t have to reprimand Mr. Weasley for his behaviour. It’s understandable given our past history. And I’m confident that he will be as professional as possible during the rest of my stay with the team.”

Angeles’ eyes gleamed with dangerous light. “Of course, Mr. Malfoy. Thanks for being understanding. Now if you and Auror Allente would take you seats, we would start with the briefing.”

Angeles turned to Ron once Malfoy and Allente took their seats. “We’re ready with your presentation Mr. Weasley. You may begin.”

Still wearing an offended expression, Weasley leaned forward and started.

“If you would refer to the files before you, Auror Potter and I prepared a preliminary file regarding the case. It all started 4 months ago, there was a stabbing incident involving one Seymour Monteggio in his apartment in London. A few days later, his fiancée reported changes in his behaviour like irritability and insomnia. In a few weeks, he developed sexual exhibitionism. In a month, he started hearing voices and within a few weeks after that, he underwent a psychotic break, attempting to kill his mother. DMLE was called in, Monteggio was put under detainment, the after a psych evaluation from a mind healer, he was admitted to the psych ward of St. Mungo’s. It was only a month ago when the Head mind healer Holt Houston noticed a pattern involving 22 patients with psychiatric problems admitted starting from Mr. Monteggio. All of them had a history of getting stabbed a few days before the onset of symptoms, starting with symptoms like irritability, hypersomnolence, insomnia, some even presented with sexual disorders like exhibitionism and sadism, then progresses into visual and auditory hallucinations, then psychosis. The issue was brought up to Head Healer Jason Mammon, who referred the case to the Auror Office. The case was assigned to Aurors David Westchester and Harry Potter, and after the initial investigation it was deduced that it was indeed the stabbing incident that is the common denominator among this cases.”

“There was no progress in the investigation for two weeks, during which 17 stabbing incidents occurred, until it was connected into an isolated stabbing incident a month before Monteggio was attacked. It involves a home invasion in the Guantamano residence in London, Arthur Guantamano was stabbed, and just like the others, he presented the aforementioned symptoms and underwent a psychotic break, killing his wife Mary Guantamano.”

“Arthur Guantamano?” Malfoy interrupted. “The former Head Auror? Ministerial Spokesperson Anthony Guantamano’s father Arthur Guantamano?”

“Yes,” Ron answered with a pinched expression. “He’s been admitted to the psych ward of St. Mungo’s ever since, but he wasn’t included in the initial victim pool because of the length of time between his attack and the others.”

“Great. This case keeps getting better and better every minute,” Harry heard Malfoy mutter. He smirked inwardly at that. Angeles has the ears of a bat and had undoubtedly heard him.

“What was that, Mr. Malfoy?” Angeles asked, on cue.

“Oh, nothing, Ma’am,” Malfoy answered smoothly. “It’s just that Arthur has always been a close friend of my mother. She would be devastated if she ever found out about this.”

“I hope you are aware that you are under strict restrictions for confidentiality,” Angeles said with a raised eyebrow.

“Of course, Ma’am.”

“Please continue, Mr. Weasley.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Ron answered with a small smile. Harry doesn’t need to read his friend’s mind to know that Ron is highly satisfied with the fact that even Malfoy isn’t immune to the Head Auror’s intimidation. “Due to the apparent connection between the two cases, we have decided to join together to solve the case. So far, the working theory is that a criminal gang is behind the production of the knife, but we still haven’t connected the crimes to any group in the system. We have several informants on the lookout for any movement that will help us narrow down the suspect pool, but so far nothing. To date, we have 49 victims and no solid leads.”

“First, is the attack on Arthur Guantamano. Then nothing for a month. Then, it starts once again with Monteggio. From then on, 22 attacks in the first 3 months, and 27 in the last month alone,” Malfoy murmured as he skimmed through his copy of the case file. His eyebrows raised high when he arrived at the last incident case. “And David Westchester was the last victim, I see?”

“Yes,” he confirmed. Westchester is his partner, and he still can’t help but curse inwardly as he remembered the incident. “We were supposed to talk to a possible informant two days ago. It was a trap.”

“Mr. Westchester has been admitted in St. Mungo’s since the incident. We still don’t know if the knife used to stab him and the knives used in the crimes are the same. But given what he was working on at the time, it is safe to assume the he was struck with a cursed knife,” Angeles said. The message behind her stare at Malfoy is evident to everyone.

“I have two weeks to work out a counter curse. Got it,” Malfoy said coolly, as if the time limit that he now has wouldn’t affect him the slightest.

“Also, with the rate of the incidents happening, and the sites that it took place, the suspects must have created multiple copies,” Weasley added.

“Now if there are no questions, then let’s proceed to the investigation. Mr. Allente and Mr. Weasley, you two continue look into the informant that Westchester and Potter was supposed to talk to before the attack. He’s the only open lead so far and if there’s anything that will help us no matter how small, we need to know it. Mr. Malfoy, we will leave you to study the curse. St. Mungo’s has already been notified of your involvement in the case and will be free to access everything under their roof within reason. Mr. Potter, you’re with Mr. Malfoy. If you learn something about the curse that would be of help, inform Allente immediately. I would join the investigation after the news conference today.”

Her speech was met with nervous silence.

“News conference?” Weasley asked. The fact that there is now a news conference for the case didn’t bode well for the team.

“Yes,” Angeles confirmed. “Minister Shacklebolt is quite concerned with the turn of events regarding this case. We have decided that we couldn’t keep this from the general public any longer.”

Draco scowled at what he heard. Though, he couldn’t deny that it’s a smart move by Shacklebolt and Angeles.

“That’s the smartest the higher ups can do right now,” he voiced, earning him an amused smirk and a nod of acknowledgment from Angeles.

“What do you mean a smart move?” Weasley demanded. “You think that calling for a news conference that would likely cause a mass panic wou–“

“What Ron means,” Potter interrupted loudly, cutting off his bestfriend’s scathing remark. “Is that why do you guys think that it’s a smart move?” he directed his question towards his Head Auror.

Draco knows that he should just keep his silence and let Angeles do the explaining for the two Gryffindor idiots, but his inner Slytherin couldn’t help himself. “This case already involves 49 people, one of which is the former Head Auror, and another one who’s an active Auror. It’s only a matter of time before this reaches the newspapers, so instead of learning it from an inside scoop from the Daily Prophet, Shacklebolt prefers it to come exclusively from his own mouth.”

“That way, they couldn’t accuse him of keeping essential news from the public,” Allente spoke up, catching up what Draco is going for.

“So Shacklebolt wants to keep his reputation clean instead of keeping mass panic from happening?” Weasley demanded.

“A mass panic happening whether we want to or not,” he answered. “Like I said, a former prominent Ministry official and an active Auror are among the long list of victims. Two war heroes are part of the investigation team, not to mention the Head Auror. We wouldn’t be able to keep this quiet whether we want to or not.” He didn’t mention the huge possibility that the Daily Prophet will be tailing his every move today.

“Not to mention, the former Death Eater that hasn’t been seen in English soil for four years,” Potter said with a hint of accusation.

“That’s a possibility, but the Chosen One’s activities would be an interesting news topic, even without a former Death Eater in the mix, don’t you think?” he responded with false sweetness.

“Why don’t we leave the administrative decisions to the higher ups and start doing our jobs?” Angeles interjected. Potter and Weasley blushed like chastised boys and dutifully clamped down their mouths. He jus, kept his stoic expression, and nodded slightly.

Angeles, however, doesn’t seem impressed by the show of submission. “I said ‘do your jobs,’ and the last time I checked sitting around like idiots in a meeting room isn’t it?”

**Author's Note:**

> Let it be put on record that i still have no idea what to do withe the story in terms of character development and relationships. In the meantime, the story will be mainly about Draco Malfoy's adventures as a Ministry employed curse breaker. i will figure out the rest as I go. Thank you and I hope you enjoy.


End file.
